Chapter 10 - Bonfire Legends Come True

That same Friday night, Paul had been sitting behind Sophie in front of the bonfire at Sam and Emily's. Jared and Kim sitting next to them, Paul and Jared watched as the girls talked absentmindedly about something. Paul tuned whatever they were saying out, because Sophie had ran a hand through her hair and her hair had hit his chest as her scent filled his nose. Paul had his knee bent and Sophie leaned her chin on his knee as she laughed about something Kim said to her.

Paul had made a habit of sneaking into Sophie's window at night after patrol. She would always leave it cracked for him when she would go to bed before he got there. Crawling in bed with her, she would automatically turn towards him and bury her face in his chest, or she'd wake up and lay her head on his chest, enjoying the warmth of him.

Sophie could feel Paul's warm hand rubbing small circles on the middle of her back as she and Kim talked. Paul and Jared were talking lucidly about something, but Sophie wasn't paying attention. She stayed focused on the conversation with Kim. Sophie couldn't help but jump when Paul hit a ticklish spot on her side. Paul had been talking to Jared and his head snapped forward when Sophie jumped and fell back against his chest. Kim and Jared couldn't help laughing as Paul looked down at Sophie, "You okay?" Sophie blushed, "You hit a sensitive spot."

Paul chuckled as his free arm pulled her closer to him and his fingers lightly grazed her sides again. Sophie shrieked as she moved around laughing as Paul tickled her side. Sophie begged him for mercy. Paul eventually gave in to her pleas as he helped her stand up so she could get some air in her lungs because she'd laughed so hard she'd turned red. Paul and Jared watched as Sophie and Kim walked around the bonfire. Kim smiled, "So did you enjoy the Quileute legends that Sam told?" Sophie nodded, "Yea. My parents never told me the stories of our tribe's legends, I mean they did, but never to this extent...They always down played the mystery and what not."

After walking around the bonfire at least 15 times, Sophie came to a stop as she laughed when Jared tossed Kim over his shoulders and jogged towards Emily and Sam who were sitting on the porch. Sophie noticed Paul was standing in front of her as she smiled, "What? You're not thinking of going all caveman and doing that to me right?" Paul chuckled as he stepped closer to her, "I would but somehow you seem to look like the type of girl who would puke on me if I did that." Sophie couldn't help but laugh, "Actually as long as you didn't run with me like that I'd probably be okay." Paul smirked, "Dually noted."

Paul leaned down and softly kissed her lips as she pushed up on her toes so he wouldn't have to lean over so far. Paul was hesitant. He was about to tell her the truth about what he was and that the legends she just thought were stories were indeed true. Paul pulled away and Sophie could see the look in his eyes. He actually looked...terrified. Terrified? Really? Paul scared? It didn't seem possible. He always seemed so fearless. Sophie touched his cheek, "What's wrong Paul?" Paul frowned, "I have to tell you something and possibly show you something and I don't want it to scare you, which I'm anticipation it will."

Sophie smiled softly, "Whatever it is you can tell me." Within the next 10 minutes, Paul managed to tell her the Quileute legends from the stories that Sam told earlier that night were completely true. He was a shape shifting werewolf, who protecting the Quileute lands from 'cold ones'...Vampires. Vampire's were real. Not to mention imprinting. Sophie closed her eyes trying to process everything she'd been told. So imprinting was involuntary and was designed to pick out the wolf's soul mate. Which by the way he just happened to inform her she was his imprint.

Sophie stood there staring at Jared, Kim, Sam, Emily and Paul. She was pretty sure they not only grew but smoked their own peyote. Because they were seriously tripping. Paul would tell Sophie was having a tough time coming to terms with it. Paul looked at everyone else, "Em, do I have any spare shorts here?" Emily looked at Paul and nodded an affirmative yes to him. Paul walked over on the other side of the bonfire and after a few minutes of shaking from head to toe he basically exploded into a ball of silver/grey fur.

Sophie stood completely paralyzed as she stared at the wolf that not even 3 seconds ago had been her boyfriend Paul. He was a wolf. A real wolf. Suddenly the heaven's opened up and it began to slowly rain, by the time Sam and Jared got Emily and Kim to the dry porch it was a steady down pour. Sophie and the silver/grey wolf were completely drenched from head to tail.

Sophie's teeth began to chatter, more from fear than anything. A nearly 6 foot tall wolf was standing in front of her and was slowly stalking towards her. She couldn't take it anymore, "Stay away from me." Her voice was low...So low it almost didn't register in Paul's wolf ears even though they had impeccable hearing. But he did hear it and he let out a whimper of sorts. Sophie turned and walked to her jeep. Before she could get there, something had a hold of her t-shirt. She spun around and ended up on the ground in a mud puddle. Paul's wolf had her shirt in his mouth trying to prevent her from leaving. He could feel the fear and anxiety come off her body. She was terrified of him right now.

Sophie did the only thing she could think of doing, she picked up a hand full of mud and slung it at Paul, it splattered all over his snout and muzzle as she screamed, "STAY AWAY FROM ME MUTT!" She felt like she couldn't catch her breath as she pulled herself up and ran the rest of the way to her vehicle as she jumped in and sped off to her house.

Kim looked at Sam, "Do you think Sophie will be ok?" Emily nodded, "She just needs some time...It's really a lot to deal with in one sitting. But then again it's not something you want to start one night and finish another." The couples watched as Paul disappeared into the woods followed by a long pained howl that seemed to echo from the Pacific Ocean all the way across the country to the Atlantic Ocean.

Sophie hear the howl, she knew it was Paul. She sat in her car in front of her house and cried against the steering wheel. Sobs raked her body violently. She wanted nothing more than to be in Paul's arms right now, but she was so afraid of him now. And she didn't even understand why it frightened her so much. Everything about him made her feel safe. Something about the 5 seconds it took for him to go from human to wolf just absolutely horrified her.

Sam and Jared followed Paul into the woods as Emily grabbed her cell phone and called Jacob. He had been on his first date with his imprint and she hated bothering him, which was why she was so relieved to find out he'd just dropped her off at home.

"Jake...It's Sophie."